Infested

Infested Part 1

Present: 5:30 pm

The day was an already dreaded pool of emotional turmoil. As being a step-dad, as fast as Henry had become, it couldn't have been any easier these days in a gossiping town as small as this one; amid losing a loved one, it can get overwhelmingly fast for the weak at heart. Luckily for Henry he had had a lifetime of building such strengths up for hardships as this.

After all, his own family had gone on their separate lives seemingly careless, after he had chosen to leave his hometown to be with the man he had fallen in love with.
It was just as well. Those 'people' he had begun to think of them as, were bat dung crazy enough without him having to be anywhere near.

The priest began his speech, feeding into Henry's sudden daydreaming.

Henry's hand fell to his side, helpless in the manner of being unusable and as he did so, he felt the tiny wriggling of fingers sweeping across his palm.

It was an act which gave a tug at Henry's heart and almost convinced a tear to shed but as easy as crying seems to be for everyone else, showing emotion had become a sign of weakness throughout his life, which Henry saught to never falter towards.

Elsewhere, the older of the two children from a previous marriage of Henry's husband Andrew, Caterina had observed her little brother's valiant behavior, so it was only a sibling rivalry's duty to reciprocate the same. Besides letting him get all the attention from her new step-father, was the last thing she was going to let happen.

Unknowingly to Henry, of the children's on-going war between them; the sympathetic effort from them both wasn't unseen, or in this case, felt - as it warmed his heart to core; whereas in this tragic moment in life, that he has found a bit of peace within himself, being surrounded by family - his family.

Henry had always fantasized of having his very own family. He wasn't completely crazy with the notion. Anything could happen right?

Roughly a year ago

Henry had been casually browsing along the coffee isle of a market. Not the market closer to his home at the time, but the nicer one. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, but, had the intuition to go here instead. On this day, he had to be here - why wasn't clear. Turning the corner to a hearts unplanned collision; a tall, ravishing gentleman offering a helping hand to getting Henry back onto his feet. Later Henry would see an epic bruise on his right bottom cheek, but, it didn't faze him for the moment.

The striking man nuzzling him right then and there.

'I want to ask you something..." he began. "...and I've already made the decision for you... I thought it were to be considerate to still ask..."

Henry's began to speed up uncontrollably beneath his chest; he had an inclination of what the eluded question had been, but, considering everything always seemingly to go awry, and jinx either possibility he had conjured it up to be, he said nothing - let alone - now he worried of thinking it.

A casual and suspicious conclusion drew on Henry's face.

"...I want you to be with me tonight and every night we can have together... I want to wake up to you next to me... I love you so much..." A tender touch of fingers traced his jaw line. "...move in with me." Hazel eyes, mirroring between sky and rain-forest colors brimmed of emotion. He waited for Henry's answer.

Though, Henry didn't want to come off as to quickly in his decision, he had no choice but to go with the somersaulted gut reaction. "I'd like nothing more."

Present: 6 pm

With the last prayers being said, He and Henry took a single rose to which they were both given earlier and placed it onto the casket to forever belong to the open earth below. Strange that no single tear had left either eye of Henry. It was as though, he'd been cut of any formation of moisture in his body. He was sure the family and friends questioned if he held a heart behind his ribs. Andrew has so easily let go and gave in to his own emotional feed; where was Henry's at? All that depressional crying in his youth must've dried up any conserved.